According to Spokesperson at Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) Dipak Dhital, Secretary Singh is scheduled to call on President Dr Ram Baran Yadav, Chairman of Interim Election Council of Ministers Khil Raj Regmi and Foreign Minister Madhav Prasad Ghimire. "This is a goodwill visit to Nepal. There is no formal agenda yet for discussions," said Dhital.[break]
Singh assumed charge as Foreign Secretary on August 1 for two years, succeeding Ranjan Mathai. Her visit to Kathmandu comes in the wake of the newly-appointed Foreign Secretary Arjun Bahadur Thapa assuming the post since the third week of July.
Sujatha Singh
Spokesperson Dhital said Singh, who will be accompanied by Joint Secretary (North) Abhay Thakur is also scheduled to hold a separate review meeting with her Nepali counterpart Thapa to assess the progress made so far on various agreements reached between the two countries.
Singh´s visit is seen with high importance as this comes in the wake of political forces in Nepal prepare to hold a fresh Constituent Assembly (CA) election on November 19. Sources said Secretary Singh is also likely to hold meeting with top political leaders across political parties during her stay in Kathmandu.
While assuming the post of Foreign Secretary, Singh had said that her immediate priorities would be India´s neighborhood. "That is where our immediate interest lies and that is where our most intent interactions are. Beyond that, it is important to strengthen relations with our strategic partners all over the world," she said.
Singh´s visit to Nepal is widely seen as an overture to accord special priority to immediate neighbor Nepal. "Her visit to Nepal shortly after assuming the post of foreign secretary clearly shows the high importance accorded to immediate neighbor Nepal, which is a trusted ally of India," Dhital further said. Singh will return home Sunday evening.
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